Blackburn is having one of the best pitching seasons in the minors, as after another dominant outing on Monday night, he has a 2.55 ERA with a remarkable 137 strikeouts and just 18 walks in 123.1 innings.

The 14th selection of the 2008 draft, Hicks has always had tremendous tools, but the numbers never matched. 2012 was not a make-or-break year, but as his first exposure to upper-level pitching, it was certainly a critical one, and he's passing with flying colors.

Bryce Harper and Mike Trout has been among the best things in baseball this year. For prospect people, they've been among the worst as they've created ridiculous expectations for every prospect in baseball. Manny Machado is 20 years old, more than holding his own at Double-A, and people yawn because Trout and Harper.

Everyone knows how great the MLB.tv product is, but the minor league version is incredible valuable to prospect folks. Sure the video quality varies wildly, and sure the majority of games are at the upper levels, but when the game of the night is in the northwest corner of the country, one is awfully happy it is there. It was the pitching matchup of the night, and it did not disappoint.

Domonic Brown, OF, Phillies (Triple-A Lehigh Valley): 3-for-5, R. Playing well at the right time and up to .276/.325/.420, but the Phillies aren't buyers anymore.

Gary Brown, OF, Giants (Double-A Richmond): 2-for-4, HR (5), 3 R, RBI, BB, SB. All of the questions about his slow start have disappeared; 30-for-66 (.454) in last 15 games and suddenly up to .292/.357/.401 overall.